Saudi Arabia's King Abdullah has ordered a major expansion of the Prophet's Mosque in the holy city of Madinah, it was announced on Friday.
Dr Ibrahim bin Abdulaziz Al-Assaf, the Gulf kingdom's Minister of Finance, made the announcement in comments published by Saudi Press Agency.
He said that the project would be implemented in three phases.
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The first phase will accommodate more than 800,000 worshippers, he said, adding that the second and third phases will accommodate a further 800,000 worshippers.
Earlier this month, Saudi Arabia said its ongoing SR80bn ($21.33bn) expansion of Makkah's Grand Mosque will eventually allow the Islamic holy site to accommodate 1.5m worshippers.
The move comes as Islamic tourism continues to grow rapidly and has proved a huge earner for the oil-rich Gulf kingdom.
According to a report by the Saudi Commission for Tourism and Antiquities, domestic tourism alone in the country increased 13.5 percent last year, generating $22bn.
Tourism accounts for about 3.1 percent of the kingdom's gross domestic product and for about 7.2 percent in the kingdom's non-oil sector.
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